WIN: Family 4 Pack to CoolER Japan: JapanFest 2016!

*Want to WIN a Family Four Pack? Details Below the Article*


Buckle your seatbelts and get ready to explore Japan like never before. This year’s JapanFest “Cooler Japan,” offers an electric combination of cool tech-advanced modern Japan with a traditional twist. JapanFest Weekend will be held on September 17-18, 2016, from 10 am to 6 pm (Saturday) and 10am to 5pm (Sunday) at the Infinite Energy Center (located at 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Duluth, GA 30097).

JapanFest is now celebrating its 30th year and typically draws crowds exceeding 20,000. Organized by JapanFest, Inc., The Japan-America Society of Georgia and The Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Georgia,  the festival is designed to promote understanding between Japanese and Americans in the Southeast.

Celebrate JapanFest with a bang! In celebration of JapanFest’s 30th anniversary, a brand new interactive firework app is being released. Create your own fireworks on the app, and see them explode on the big screen!

We make Japanese culture COOL in our Children’s Area! Children will be able to make paper puppets and enjoy Kamishibai, a form of Japanese theatrical storytelling that uses paper puppets. They can also learn Japanese calligraphy, try on traditional Japanese clothes, make kites, color in Japanese coloring books, fold origami figures, and play with traditional Japanese tops and paper sumo wrestlers! For our modern counterpart, children will get to play with Samurai Borgs (Japanese fighting robots), Beyblade (modern Japanese tops), Hyper yoyos, and Kendama (modern cup and ball game).

Kids will also be given the opportunity to let their creativity shine. This year we will be featuring a 3-D pen that will make their art literally stand off the page! And with our 3-D aquarium, they can bring their art to life! Children will draw their fish, and after scanning it, they will be able to see their fish swim around our 3-D fish tank. Enjoy a day of family fun at JapanFest.

If you need a pick-me-up from all the fun, JapanFest Konbini store and Japanese grocery store, Tomato, are providing tasty and unique Japanese snacks!

Love music? JapanFest will feature a variety of musical performances sure to suit all ages and interests, including taiko drumming, J-Rock and J-Pop, and classical music. The festival will also feature Japanese dance performances, a kimono fashion show, and the premiere of kabuki theater in Atlanta! 

Want a selfie taken in Tokyo without the jet lag? Take a virtual trip to Japan with our Magical Photo booth. Take a picture in famous Japanese locations such as Mt. Fuji, Harajuku, or even a photo with a sumo wrestler! Other photo ops include the cute Japanese mascot Domo-Kun, who will be at the festival. 

This will be our second year collaborating with anime convention, MomoCon. The Anime village is a section of the festival completely dedicated to anime products, anime viewings, and gaming. Keep Momocon is also sponsoring a Pokémon Go! Meetup. Capture and boost a gym, claim resources from Poke Stops and build your team, all factions welcome!  

For fans of more traditional fighting methods, rather than Pokémon battles, there will be demonstrations of virtually every Japanese martial art in existence, including aikido, karate, kendo, kyudo, and sumo.

Shoppers will love the amazing array of Japanese goods available. Ginza-dori, organized by the Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Georgia and named after Tokyo's famous shopping district, will feature Japanese ceramics, traditional Japanese clothing and accessories, and fun items such as masks and toys. For those who want to try on a kimono, the Konnichiwa Club will dress them in the latest kimonos from Japan. 

Attendees are encouraged to purchase  tickets online to minimize waiting at the event entrance, as additional entrances are provided for pre-purchased ticket holders.

Individual tickets are available for sale until the day before the event (Though Infinite Energy Center ticketing system, AXS).  http://www.infiniteenergycenter.com/events/detail/japanfest-2016 .  The deadline for our corporate ticket package is August 10th for e-tickets https://japanfest.formstack.com/forms/ticket_package (60 tickets and above) 

Tickets are $10. Children age 6 or younger free. Teachers can bring students to JapanFest for free by applying online at www.japanfest.org. Larger organizations can purchase ticket packages online. 

No pets other than guide dogs are allowed inside the convention center. For more information,  call 404-842-0736 or visit www.japanfest.org.

Platinum-Delta, Gold-Aflcac, Coca Cola, Silver-Fisher-Broyles, Kumon North America,  TV Japan/NHK Cosmomedia America Inc., WSBTV-Channel 2, Bronze-American Honda Motor Co., Inc. Power Equipment Division; LeafFilter; Miura America Company; PriceWaterhouse Coopers; Sapporo USA, Inc; Temple University, Japan Campus; TOTO USA Inc; Fuji-Dexerials America Corporation, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport,  Inside Gwinnett Magazine, Panasonic Automotive Systems, Yamaha Motor Corp.U.S.A, Sakura-Atlanta Parent Magazine; Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz, PC; Ernst & Young LLP; Global Atlanta; Gwinnett Daily Post; Holiday Inn Gwinnett Center; Creative Loafing; Honda Precision Parts of Georgia; KPMG; Nidec Elesys Americas Corporation; Toppan Printing; Ume-Atlanta Braves, Kuraoka Clinic, Machida Family of Duluth

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Rules: Must be a subscriber to Macaroni Kid Decatur to enter (if not SUBSCRIBE HERE) and a resident of the Metro Atlanta area. Must be 18 or older. Winner will be chosen by Random.org on Monday, August 29th at 12 noon and announced on FACEBOOK. Once chosen, winner will have to respond with 24 hours!  If winner does not respond within the required time, another winner will be chosen.